1. Field of the Invention
The invention is generally related to the field of damping cylinders. More particularly, the present invention is an improvement to damping cylinders previously having both internal floating pistons and shafts.
2. Description of the Related Art
The use of internal floating pistons, also known as and will be referred to herein as IFPs, in damping cylinders to compensate for volume changes due to the displacement of damping fluid within the damping cylinder and thermal expansion of the damping fluid, is well known. For example, the following Fox Racing Shox (Fox Factory, Inc.) patents depict the use of an IFP: U.S. Pat. No. 6,135,434; U.S. Pat. No. 6,296,092; U.S. Pat. No. 6,311,962; U.S. Pat. No. 6,360,857; U.S. Pat. No. 6,415,895; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,604,751 and are incorporated by reference herein as are all the patents and published patent applications referred to within this patent application.
Furthermore, it is often common to have shafts extending the longitudinal length of the damping cylinder. The shaft may comprise a piston rod, a valve control rod, or a combination of both. For example, in FOX U.S. Pat. No. 6,360,857, we depict the use of a shaft extending the length of the damping cylinder wherein the shaft comprises a piston shaft and a control shaft. In another FOX patent, the shaft passes through the IFP. See U.S. Pat. No. 6,415,895 (FIG. 7).